


Survivie

by mrswellrested



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Airplane Crashes, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Desert Island, Desert Island Fic, Drama, Eventual Relationships, F/M, Fluff, Mutual Pining, Survival, Wilderness Survival
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2021-01-10
Packaged: 2021-03-09 05:40:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27499564
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mrswellrested/pseuds/mrswellrested
Summary: After a plane crash, Elliot and Olivia find themselves on a desert island.
Relationships: Olivia Benson/Elliot Stabler
Comments: 2
Kudos: 8





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I blame the group chat for this one. I asked if any fics like this existed and the next thing I know I'm getting bullied into writing it lol
> 
> Anyway, here's the start of another fic. Freak is still my priority, so this one won't be updated as frequently until that fic is done. I hope you enjoy! Please let me know what you think!

"I'm really going to miss this place," Elliot said as he stepped out of his hotel room with his overnight bag in one hand and his sunglasses in the other. His eyes caught sight of his partner, dressed in a light blue t-shirt, dark capri pants, and slip-on canvas shoes leaning against the wall of the floral wallpapered hallway with her overnight back on the floor next to her. She was still trying to appear professional, and he suddenly felt underdressed in his basketball shorts and a cotton t-shirt.

"Hmmm?" She hummed, finally looking up from her phone to him.

"Kathy and I always said we'd come here on our honeymoon one day, but that never happened. Four kids kind of makes it impossible to have a honeymoon in Hawaii." He pulled the door closed behind him with his fingers and adjusted the grip on his bag. "Or anywhere really."

"We were here for two nights," she responded as she pushed off the wall she'd been leaning against waiting for Elliot. She leaned down and grabbed her bag. She didn't want to admit it, but she was going to miss their very brief time in Hawaii. The weather had been gorgeous from the moment they landed up to when she woke up a couple of hours before. She wasn't looking forward to returning to the frigid cold New York City. "Hardly anything to miss. We saw a glimpse of the beach when the cab took us to the hotel, and we saw the courthouse and jail."

"Let a man dream," he laughed. "You ready? Honolulu Police said they'd have Hawkins at the airport early so we can take over custody."

Byron Hawkins was the sole reason they were even in the Aloha State. He was wanted for a string of rape-homicides back in New York and had fleed before SVU could even catch up with him. It was only a few days ago Captain Cragen received a call from the captain of the Honolulu Police saying they had their suspect. Elliot and Olivia were on a flight to the island of O'ahu less than forty-eight hours later. They spent their only full day on the island filling out transfer and custody paperwork and meeting with the police and the DA. By the time they returned to their hotel, they had enough time to get dinner at the hotel's cafe before it closed for the night.

"I'm ready. I can't wait to get home. That mattress was a nightmare on my back." She rubbed her sore lower back with her free hand and grimaced.

"Could have come and slept in my bed." Elliot waggled his eyebrows and smirked. Even though their time had been brief, spending the day with Olivia in Hawaii had been something of a fever dream for him. Ever since he and Kathy finalized the divorce, Olivia was all that was on his mind as of late.

"Uh, no," Olivia laughed as she felt her cheeks begin to warm. "Do you think we have time to grab some breakfast? I don't want to start our twelve-hour flight without something in my stomach. I just want something quick, like some toast or cereal."

"I'm sure we can find you some Captain Crunch in this place," Elliot said, bumping shoulders with her before leading the way down the hall to the elevators.

They arrived at the airport an hour and a half later and checked in. They were ushered to a back room by airport security to find Honolulu police waiting for a scrawny looking blonde man in handcuffs and shackles.

"Byron Hawkins," Elliot said as he stepped forward. "You remember us?"

"Piss off," Byron grunted.

"We have a warrant for your arrest and will be escorting you back to New York," Olivia said.

"He's all yours now," one of the officers said, handing Elliot a clipboard with the last piece of transfer paperwork on it. "Just need you to sign that and we'll leave you to it."

Elliot scribbled down his signature and handed the clipboard to Olivia who signed it and handed it back to the officer. "Thanks," she said to them. "And we'll just go out to the plane from here?"

"Yes ma'am," one of the officers said. "There will be a US Marshal on your flight as well. His name is David Jones. Big redheaded guy. You can't miss him."

"It's been fun, but he's your prisoner. Good luck with your case," the other officer said before he led his partner out of the room.

"You know, if you just stayed in the city, we wouldn't have to be doing this," Elliot said, taking Byron by the arm and leading. "Now we get to spend the next twelve hours together. I hope you don't mind talking because Olivia here loves to talk nonstop on plane rides."

Olivia laughed as an attendant came into the room to tell them it was okay to go outside and board. She followed after Elliot who escorted Hawkins out to the tarmac. Waiting outside was a six-foot-plus man in a loose-fitting suit with bright red hair. He smiled when he spotted the two detectives and stepped forward, offering his hand.

"US Marshal David Jones," he said, shaking Elliot's hand and then Olivia's. "You're Detectives Benson and Stabler, I assume."

"That we are," Elliot said. "Elliot Stabler. That's Olivia Benson."

David's eyes looked Olivia up and down before turning back to Elliot a grin now plastered across his face. Olivia had to stop herself from rolling her eyes.

"We have four seats reserved at the back of the plane for us," David said."We'll be boarding first so other passengers don't see we're transporting a fugitive." He glanced at his watch and made a clicking noise. "We better get boarding. They're going to allow passengers on any minute."

Elliot watched the redhead turn and head up the staircase positioned at the back of the plane. "Let's go home, Liv," Elliot said, before guiding Hawkin's up the stairs.

Hawkins was seated at the window seat with Elliot next to him and Olivia in the aisle seat. Across the aisle, the Marshal sat by himself. He watched as passengers began to board and tried to make small talk with Olivia.

"First time to Hawaii?"

"Yea, just for a couple of nights though."

"Shame. If you ever get the chance to vacation here you should. The beaches are beautiful, and seeing the volcanoes is a once in a lifetime thing."

"Hmmm."

Elliot watched as David kept glancing at Olivia, staring her up and down like she was a piece of meat. It took everything in him not to get up and glue the other man's eyes shut.

"So are you following us all the way to New York?" Elliot asked.

"Oh, no," David answered. "When we touch down in San Francisco, I get off."

"Thank god."

"What?"

"Nothing."

"Shut up," Hawkins groaned. "I want to sleep."

"That's not happening," Olivia said. "You can use this time to think about why you raped and murdered four women." She was thankful for the three rows of empty seats between them and the other passengers. The last thing she wanted to do was cause a panic among the passengers finding out there was a murderer on board.

The flight attendants began their safety demonstrations as the plane moved to the runway. Elliot buckled his seat belt before making sure Hawkins was buckled in. He was glad to see the man was able to buckle the seat belt himself despite the handcuffs and that he didn't have to help.

"I hope this is a quick flight," he sighed, resting his head against the seat.

"Six hours to San Francisco," Olivia said. "Don't worry, I'll try not to talk too much."

He smirked and turned his head to look at her. "You can talk to me all you want."

The plane rumbled down the runway as it picked up speed and before long they were in the air over the ocean. Hawkins was looking out the window with fascination. When Elliot noticed he seemed to be enjoying himself, he reached over and pulled the shade down. "You heard Detective Benson. Think about what you've done."

Byron rolled his eyes and slumped down in his seat.

An hour into the flight, Olivia's eyes popped open as the plane hit a bit of turbulence. The fasten seat belt light came on and she inwardly groaned. She was never a fan of flying and turbulence, however normal it may be, always made her nervous.

"Good thing I never unbuckled," Byron said sarcastically as a chime came from the speaker overhead.

"This is your captain speaking. I'm sure you can feel we're hitting a bit of turbulence. We ask that you remain seated and fasten your seat belts and we'll be smooth sailing once we get through this patch," the voice of their unseen pilot said.

"I hate flying," David said as he fastened his seat belt. "I'll be so happy once I get this desk job. What about you? You like fieldwork?" He asked, looking over to Olivia.

"It's fine," Olivia answered as she bounced in her seat.

"You okay?" Elliot's voice sounded softly in her other ear. "You got a death grip on the armrest."

"I'm fine," Olivia said, loosening her grip. "Hate turbulence."

As soon as the words left her mouth, there was a loud popping sound and it felt like the plane dropped several hundred feet. The facemasks dropped from the ceiling as people began to panic.

"Attention, passengers, we ask that you put on the face masks in front of you. Please put on yours first before assisting others," one of the flight attendants announced over the coms.

Elliot pulled his mask on over his nose and mouth before making sure Olivia did the same. He then turned and put the mask on Byron. As he pulled the straps tight around the other man's head, the plane fell again.

"Attention passengers, in case we need to make an emergency landing on the water, we ask that you please put on your life vests found under your seats. Please put yours on first before assisting others."

Olivia couldn't believe what was happening. She felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest with how hard and fast it was pounding. Reaching under her seat, she grabbed the deflated life vest. She put hers on and looked over to Elliot as he was putting on his. She then watched Elliot reach under Hawkin's seat and put the life jacket on the man.

"You gonna keep these on me?" Byron asked in a panic, gesturing to his cuffs and shackles.

Elliot glanced at Olivia before pulling the keys out of his pocket and unlocking the handcuffs and ankle shackles. "Don't you think about moving," he warned him. "As soon as this is over, they're going back on."

He was shaking as a million things ran through her head. He thought about his children, Olivia, Kathy, Olivia, the squad, Olivia, and then Olivia again and again. He looked over to her to find her shaking in her seat. As if she knew his eyes were on her, she glanced over to him. Her eyes were wide and filled with fear. He never saw her so terrified before.

"We're going to be okay," he said loudly over the noise and panic that filled the cabin. "It's going to be fine. Just keep your eyes on me."

"Attention passengers, please assume the crash position. Keep your feet flat on the floor and as far under the seat as possible. Lean forward so your head is against the seat in front of you and lace your fingers behind your head. If there is no seat in front of you, bend forward and put your head between your knees," the voice of their captain said loudly over the coms.

"Dear Lord Jesus, protect me," Jones pleaded in the seat next to Olivia. "I promise if I survive this, I'll serve you every day. Don't let me die here, God."

For the first time in her life, Olivia thought praying might not be such a bad idea after all.

"Olivia, we're going to be okay," Elliot told her again as she leaned forward and did as the captain instructed. She faced death a number of times in her life, but this was the first time she actually felt scared. A thought struck her that she might not make it out of this alive. Time was slowing down as she thought about her imminent death and each second felt like agony as she prepared for impact.

"Brace! Brace! Brace!" The captain yelled over the coms.

"Elliot I-" Olivia yelled out, but she never finished. The plane collided with the Pacific ocean and everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Last update for a couple of weeks (probably, maybe, we'll see what happens with my schedule). Enjoy, and feel free to let me know what you think!

Everything was distorted. His ears were ringing and his vision was blurry. He blinked hard a few times, the picture cleared and his eyes adjusted to the new lighting. The cabin was dim. The only light was coming from the windows of the plane and separations in the hull of the plane. It took Elliot a minute to focus and realize where he was and what had just happened. It wasn't until he felt the water lapping at his ankles did the reality sink in.

Shit.

Elliot took stock of himself. He saw no blood on him. He felt no pain, but he knew that didn't mean anything. Adrenaline was pumping hard and fast through his veins. He looked to his right to find Byron Hawkins slumped over in his seat, blood dripping into the water filling the cabin. Elliot put two fingers to the man's neck and found no pulse. He then turned to his left and found Olivia leaning sideways in her seat, her eyes closed as if she just fell asleep.

"God please," he prayed as he looked for her pulse.

It was strong and steady beneath his fingers and he let out a sigh of relief.

"Is she…"

Elliot looked up to see David unbuckling his seat belt and trying to stand. He stumbled forward and fell back in his seat.

"She's alive," Elliot said, unbuckling his own seat belt. "Hawkins is dead."

"Oh, well…."

"Liv, Liv, can you hear me," Elliot said, gently tapping Olivia's cheek to try to bring her to consciousness. "Liv, wake up."

A small groan came from her throat as her eyes fluttered open. Elliot watched her eyes flick around widely as she tried to sit up.

"Elliot?"

"I'm here," he answered. "Are you okay? Does anything hurt?"

"I-I don't think so," she said. Olivia surveyed the scene in front of her. People were getting out of their seats and wading through the water that was starting to fill the plane. Some people remained still in their seats and she wondered how many of them didn't survive the crash.

"Come on, I got the door open," someone yelled from a few rows ahead.

"There are people already out in the water. They have life rafts," someone else said.

"Let's get out of here," David said, getting back up and making his way down the aisle to join the people exiting the plane.

Olivia stood and followed after him with Elliot close behind her. The water was up to her knees now as it poured into the plane. It was filled with the personal possessions of the passengers and blood of the deceased or injured. For a moment she thought about sharks, but pushed the thought aside and focused on the more pressing matter at hand. As she passed each row of seats, she checked for survivors while Elliot helped those who were injured get up and out of the plane. A few flight attendants were helping people into one of the two large life rafts that were drifting just off the side of the plane.

When all that was left in the cabin were the dead, the two inflated the life vests around their neck and got ready to exit the plane. Elliot grabbed Olivia's hand and stopped her before she went out the door. He watched as the life rafts were slowly floating away from the plane as the last of the survivors were being pulled into them.

"When we get out there, swim as fast as you can to the life raft. This plane is going under and if we don't get far enough away it will suck us down with it," he said.

Olivia nodded and looked out the door. The ocean water was rough and choppy, but it was an otherwise gorgeous, sunny day. She suddenly felt nervous about her swimming skills as she saw the conditions of the water she was meant to be swimming in.

"We're going to be okay," Elliot said, as though he could sense her nervousness. "Go, Olivia."

She looked at him one last time before plunging into the ocean.

Elliot watched Olivia go under and bob back up to the surface. When she reached the life raft, he jumped into the water and followed her. Olivia was pulled into the inflatable boat and as Elliot grabbed the hand of the man waiting to pull him up after her, a wave pulled him away and tipped the raft.

He lost sight of Olivia as he swam back towards the raft the other passengers were trying to upright. He saw Olivia break the surface several yards away from the raft, but she seemed to be floating further and further away. Elliot changed direction and swam as fast as he could towards her, fighting against the current and the waves. She was trying to do the same to get back to the raft.

"Olivia!" He called out as another wave pushed him under the surface. He floated back up to find Olivia even further away. He could see that she was focused on him, trying to swim towards him. His body ached and his breathing was labored as he continued to make his way towards Olivia. His arms and legs wanted to give up and just allow his body to sink into the depths.

When his hand grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her to him, he never wanted to let her go. The fear of watching Olivia float off into nothingness dissipated and was replaced by a new more pressing fear. They were too far away from the life rafts and ocean conditions were too strong to fight against. They were adrift in open water.

"Hey!" Olivia tried yelling and waving her free hand. "Hey! Over here!"

Elliot squinted through the sun to try to get a better look at the group. He could see someone pointing at them and began to paddle towards them, but as he and Olivia continued to drift further and further away, the group of survivors grew smaller and disappeared into the distance.

"Elliot, I can't see them anymore," Olivia said, her voice shaky as her eyes shifted from the horizon to him.

"It's going to be okay. The coast guard is going to be here soon," he reassured her, trying to keep her as calm as possible. He knew it was no use panicking. Panicking would lead to exhaustion and exhaustion to death. "They're looking for us. All of us. There's no way they don't know that plane went down." His eyes scanned the horizon and the sky. All he could hear was the sound of the water surrounding him and Olivia's breathing. A large piece of metal from the wreckage floated in their direction, and when it got close enough, he reached out and grabbed it.

"Here, get on," Elliot said, holding it as steady as he could so Olivia could pull herself up. Once she was safely on the makeshift raft, he got on, causing it to rock for a moment and almost tossing Olivia back into the water. He grabbed hold of her arm once more and held it tight as the piece of plane balanced itself out.

Neither of them said anything to the other. They were both lost in their own thoughts, both looking off into the horizons hoping and praying help came along. The swells and waves tried to tip them over a number of times, but they were able to stay afloat. As the sun began to move lower in the sky, their hope faded more and more.

Olivia couldn't believe the situation they were in. How could they survive a plane crash only to possibly die adrift in the middle of the ocean? Fate was one twisted bitch.

She checked her watch, thankful it still worked and saw it was starting to near six in the evening. It had been hours since the crash and still, no one had found them yet. She was beginning to wonder just how far they floated from the rest of the survivors.

She started at the water and realized just how thirsty she was. She wanted so bad to just cup some water in her hands and drink, but it would only harm her more than help. Humans could only survive three days without water, but Olivia didn't think she'd make it that long.

"We're going to die out here, aren't we?" She asked, breaking the silence for the first time in hours.

"No," Elliot said. "We're not dying here. I'm not going to let that happen."

"That's a nice thing to say, El, but let's face it. They haven't found us yet. We're miles from any sort of land. We have no food, no water, no means of communication. We're fucked."

"We're going to be found," Elliot said firmly. "They aren't going to just let us die out here, and you know damn well Cragen, Munch, and Fin won't let them stop looking for us. I know things don't look good right now, Liv, but it's going to be alright. We're going to get through this. I need you to try and believe that."

She nodded, trying to hold onto his words. She wanted to believe they'd be alright. She wanted to believe they'd be found and would survive this, but with each passing minute, that hope was slipping away. She hugged her knees to her chest and stared into the darkening water and her distorted reflection.

The sun was nearly gone from the horizon when she looked up and saw it. It was a huge dark mass in the distance and it was growing nearer as they floated towards it. She nudged Elliot who was laying on his back and staring at the sky and pointed straight ahead. "El, look!"

He tilted his head and followed to where she pointed. When he saw what she spotted, he slowly sat up and a smile spread across his face.

"Land ho."


	3. Chapter 3

The surf near the shore of the island was rough, but shallow enough for them to get off their makeshift raft and push it to shore. By the time their feet were on the sand, the sun had gone from the sky, leaving them in a faint glow of light from the waxing moon.

"It's too dark to explore," Elliot said as they pulled the piece of plane wreckage up to the tree line of the beach. "We'll have to see if we can find a town or village or something in the morning."

"So we're going to what? Sleep here?" Olivia asked, looking up and down the beach. She didn't like the idea of sleeping out in the open in an unfamiliar place. The thought of venomous snakes, large insects, or animals looking for food didn't sit well with her. Those were the least of her worries though. She worried more about whether or not the island was inhabited by people and who they were. She could remember stories of Christian missionaries trying to meet with tribes on islands and them getting killed in the process. She didn't want herself or Elliot to be found trespassing on land they had no business being on.

"Well Liv, I don't think they have a Motel 6 anywhere," Elliot responded. "Here, if we can get this upright and lean it against this tree, we'll at least have some shelter if it rains. The wind coming off the ocean should keep the bugs away from us tonight too."

She nodded and helped him pick up the large metal sheet and prop it against a tree. It made a sort of lean-to, but it was not enough space for both of them to lay comfortably. She wasn't looking forward to sleeping up right against a tree, but at that point, her body didn't care anymore. Olivia was exhausted, both physically and mentally.

As she crawled under the lean-to to investigate the space, she saw Elliot stripping off his wet shirt and hanging it off a corner of the sheet of metal. Her eyes trailed down his bare chest for a moment before snapping back up to his face. "What are you doing?" She asked.

"I'm not sleeping in wet clothes," Elliot said, kicking off his shoes and watching the water flow out of them before peeling off his socks. He then stripped out of his shorts, leaving him in nothing but dark blue boxer briefs. "Don't worry, I'm not taking everything off. Hopefully by morning everything will be dry."

"You have a point," she said as she pulled off her shoes. It felt nice to get out of the heavy waterlogged shoes and allow her pruney skin to dry. She stood and pulled off her shirt and hung it on the opposite corner of the piece of metal. Her bra was still wet, but she wasn't about to take that off and sleep topless next to Elliot. She slipped out of her bottoms and draped them over the top of the metal. She glanced over to Elliot who was pulling large leaves off the trees around them. Olivia didn't understand what he was doing until he started leaving the leaves down under the lean-to to create a barrier between their bodies and the sandy ground.

"Figured this would be better than just sitting or laying in dirt," he said as he crawled under the lean-to and laid down. "It's not too bad actually. Sort of like that one bad mattress back in the cribs."

"I doubt that," Olivia answered as she crawled into the lean-to and sat with her back against the tree. "Maybe one of us should stay awake for awhile? Just in case someone comes along or if there are animals that think we're dinner."

"That's a good idea. You get some sleep. I'll take watch first."

"Don't be ridiculous. I'll take watch. Besides, I don't think I can sleep."

"Okay, if that's what you want. Just wake me up when you want me to take over," he replied, closing his eyes and trying to get comfortable. He could feel pieces of wood and leaf poking and scratching at his back. He doubted he'd get any sleep that night as well.

The exhaustion took over though and sleep was hard to fight. He closed his eyes for what he thought was a few seconds and then was being awoken by Olivia. He checked his watch and saw it was nearing four in the morning.

"I can't keep my eyes open anymore," she whispered, her voice heavy with exhaustion. "Let me get a couple hours of sleep and wake me up when the sun is up."

She traded places with him and he sat against the tree, looking up and down the beach. It was silent, save for the sound of the waves crashing on shore and the birds that were just waking. From what he'd seen of the island, it was beautiful. It was the type of place one would go on a honeymoon to, and Elliot hoped beyond hope that this island was some sort of tourist destination.

When the sun rose above the horizon, he gently nudged Olivia awake. He watched her wince as she sat up. He chuckled softly as some of the leaves clung to her skin. He reached over and pulled the leaves off her back and set them aside.

"That was horrible," she said as she crawled out from under the lean-to and stood. She stretched her arms above her head.

Elliot quickly looked away and decided to follow suit and stand. "It wasn't so bad. I've slept on worse."

"I wasn't in the military," Olivia reminded him as she began to get dressed. "Thank god these are dry."

"Yea, we got lucky. I was afraid it would rain," Elliot said. He pulled his shirt over his head and pulled on his shorts and socks before shoving his feet into his sneakers. "Though now that I'm thinking of it. Rain would have been nice. At least we would have had some fresh water."

"So what do we do? Explore this island and see if we can find anyone?" Olivia asked.

"We will, but we need to concentrate on finding water and food first. We're not going to be much use searching if we're dying of dehydration and starvation. I should try to start a fire too. We could use it to sterilize water and send a smoke signal to any aircraft or ships."

They decided to start walking down the beach first before venturing into the tropical forest and the unknown. Olivia hoped they would happen upon a vacation spot, but after they walked a half hour along the sand and only found more sand and forest, her hopes faded fast.

When they reached a tall cliff that blocked them from proceeding down the beach further, they turned around and began the walk back to their camp. Along the way, Elliot walked along the tree line and began picking up bits of wood, sticks, and dried leaves to make a fire with. He dropped off the supplies at their lean-to as they passed it, and continued down the opposite end of the beach.

The beach started to curve, and Elliot knew they were about to end up on the other side of the island. As he stared down the stretch of sand in front of him, he saw no signs of civilization. A feeling of dread and hopelessness began to creep up through his body. He tried to quell the feeling, reminding himself that they'd be rescued and that their stay on the island wasn't going to be permanent. It was only a matter of when they'd be rescued.

Hours? Days? Weeks?

Either way, they'd need to survive. They needed food, water, fire, and shelter.

"El…" Olivia said softly next to him. "I think this island is deserted." Her voice had a slight tremble to it. It was something he hadn't heard before, and the thought of Olivia being scared, worried him more than being stuck on a desert island.

"I think so too," he replied. "We should probably start searching for water and food while we wait for a rescue team."

She nodded and followed after him as he turned around to walk back along the beach to their camp. The island wasn't very wide, so she wondered how they were supposed to find fresh water. She doubted there was any sort of lake hidden amongst the trees. As for food, well she never cared for coconuts before but she didn't have a choice now.

She had seen the reality shows of people competing to survive in the wilderness. The shows were all fake, of course. None of the contestants were actually surviving on a desert island. They were made to look ragged and dirty for a few hours before being carted back to a hotel, but there was some truth in the survival skills that were presented. Olivia knew they'd have to somehow boil salt water to obtain freshwater or create a rainwater catch system.

The knowledge she had wasn't much, but at least it was something. She wasn't going to be completely useless.

As they neared their camp, she spotted something sitting along the tree line. She left Elliot's side and picked up the small sphere that was laying on the ground. She held it up to show Elliot and smiled.

"I found breakfast."


	4. Chapter 4

Cracking open a coconut proved to be more of a challenge than Elliot had originally thought. They spent a good hour passing the fruit back and forth between them, trying to figure out a way to open it. Once they finally did get it open, they shared the milk and the white meat. It wasn't much, but at least it was something in their stomachs.

While Olivia traced the letters SOS into the sand, Elliot began working on a fire. As he ran the stick back and forth along the grove of a dried branch he found, he watched Olivia dragging her bare feet over the sand. She seemed a little less anxious after having something to eat and drink. Elliot knew how powerful food and water were not only to the physical body, but also to the psyche. Even though their situation was still dire, Olivia looked a little brighter. He knew that if he could continue to find them food and water, it would make things a lot less bleak.

She caught him watching her and stopped in the middle of making the last S. She held a hand up to her eyes, blocking out the blinding sun as she looked back at him. "Why don't you focus on your own work instead of watching me," she said loud enough for him to hear.

"Just making sure you can spell SOS. It's a big word," Elliot teased.

"Ha. Ha." She smiled and shook her head as she continued dragging her feet through the hot sand. When she finished, she walked back to the shade and sat down next to Elliot as he continued to rub the stick against the larger piece of wood. "We should probably try to find more coconuts."

"We will," Elliot reassured her. "But if I can get this fire going, we can try to catch some fish and have some actual food."

"Oh, don't want to be adventurous and try some raw fish?" Olivia asked with a laugh.

"Definitely not," he grunted as he moved the stick faster in the grove. He remained focused, ignoring the pain that was erupting from his hands. When the smallest hint of smoke began to rise from the wood, his eyes widened in surprise. "Grab me a little bit of those leaves and grass."

Olivia didn't question his request and grabbed a clump of dead leaves and stringy grass from the pile he had ready to use. "What am I doing with it?" She asked.

"Put it at the end of the grove here," Elliot answered, nodding his head to the piece of wood. "We want to catch the embers that are being created. We'll be able to get a fire going if we can get that kindling to light."

She did as he said and watched as the small wad of natural materials began to smoke. Elliot dropped his head down close to the wood and gently blew on the leaves and fibers. As he continued to provide oxygen, a small spec of orange embers began to smolder. With quick and steady hands, he transferred the material to the small pile of tinder he had built up in a wide shallow pit. He continued to gently blow on the kindling and soon a flame danced amongst the small pieces of wood.

Elliot's face lit up as he began to feed it more fuel until the flames were strong and crackling. Olivia couldn't help but smile as she watched him reach his goal. "So what do we do now?" She then asked as he sat back to marvel at his feat.

"Build this up some more. We gotta get the smoke thick and tall to be seen by aircraft, but in the meantime, we need to look for water and food," Elliot said.

* * *

Her stomach rumbled as they fought their way through the thick forest of the island. She wished she could say that this was the first time in her life that she experienced the pain of hunger, but she could not. She went days without eating when she was a child while her mother was out drinking or passed out in the living room. It had been years since Olivia felt that pain, but being on that island seemed to bring it all back to her.

They were able to find several more fallen coconuts, and Elliot even caught a few small brown and green colored lizards to cook and eat. Olivia was definitely not looking forward to eating them. Their search for water was for nought though. The areas they searched had no source of freshwater. The milk from the coconuts they found would keep them hydrated for a while, but they needed to find drinkable water.

They emerged from the forest covered in sweet and panting as they lugged their haul of coconuts and lizard carcasses to their camp. Their fire was still burning in their makeshift fire pit. Elliot dropped some more wood on the flames before he placed the lizards on a flat rock and put them on the edge of the fire to cook.

"What if they're poisonous?" Olivia asked, not wanting to spend the rest of the day puking or worse, dying.

"Well, that's the risk we have to take," Elliot answered. "We need protein, and this is all we have until we can find a way to catch fish or crabs or something a little more substantial."

She sighed. She knew their whole time on the island was going to be a big game of _If_. _If_ they found water. _If_ they caught fish. _If_ they'd be rescued. _If_ they'd survive. She didn't like not knowing what was to come. Olivia spent the majority of her life planning for anything and everything, but being stranded on a deserted island threw a wrench in her plans. Thinking about everything made her head throb and the stress was starting to run her ragged.

"I'm going to try to take a nap. I'm exhausted," Olivia said, wanting an excuse to just drift away into another world. "Wake me in an hour or two."

Elliot nodded and poked at the cooking lizards with a long thin stick. He watched her walk over to the lean-to and lay down in it's shade with her back to him. He worried for her. Elliot knew she was trying to handle their current situation as best as she could, but she was never trained for a survival scenario where as he was. He never thought he'd have to use the wilderness survival training he received from his time in the marines, but Elliot should know by now that he should never say never.

When he deemed the small reptiles to be cooked, he pulled the rock from the fire using a couple of sticks so everything could cool down. He glanced over to Olivia to find her lying still on her side. He could see the subtle rise and fall of her breathing and knew she had fallen asleep. He put a few more sticks on the fire and decided to search for more firewood.

It was getting to be late in the afternoon. He checked his watch as he began to walk down the beach. The sun would be setting in a few hours, bringing them to the end of their first day on the island. He wasn't worried that they weren't found yet. Elliot knew the amount of time and work it took to start a search and rescue operation. He didn't expect to be found for another couple more days.

_If_ they were found.

He tried not to think about what would happen if they weren't found. He'd worry about that later. For now, he needed to focus on finding firewood.

As he walked down the beach, something up a head caught his eye. He couldn't make out what the mass was, but it was caught on a rock on the shore. The incoming and outgoing tide made it move back and forth. As he neared the unknown object, he could begin to make out some familiar shapes.

Tangled in what looked to be an old fishing net were soda cans, plastic bottles, plastic bags, and other miscellaneous pieces of garbage. It seemed even the beautiful island they were trapped on wasn't untouched by the human waste.

Elliot thought he could jump for joy. Aluminum cans would be incredibly useful. They could boil water in them. They could craft spear tips and other tools. Plastic bottles would allow them to collect and save water. The fishing net would allow them to fish. Elliot never thought he'd be so happy to see garbage. He set the wood he collected down in the sand and pulled the mass of trash onto the beach. He then set to work on untangling everything from the net.

The sun was starting to set by the time he was finished. The net was a few inches wide and a couple feet long, but it would hold a few fish. There were a number of soda cans, both whole and crushed. The plastic bottles would need to be cleaned out, but none of them were compromised with holes. There were several plastic grocery bags, plastic utensils, and Styrofoam containers. There were also a couple articles of clothing. The fabric was dirty, wet, and covered in seaweed, but it would be useful.

He piled everything into the net, collected the firewood he found, and began to drag the treasures back to their camp.

Olivia awoke to the sound of cans clanging against each other. For a moment she thought she was back home listening to the garbage collectors on the street below her apartment, but then she heard the sound of the waves and the tweets and squawks of birds. She opened her eyes, sat up, and caught sight of Elliot carrying a bundle of branches and twigs in one hand and dragging something with the other.

"I come bearing gifts," he said neared her. "You have a nice nap?"

"It was okay," Olivia answered, stretching her arms above her head and grimacing. Her body was sore and stiff from sleeping on the hard ground. "What did you find?"

"Garbage."

She blinked. "Garbage?"

"Thank God for trash," he said, dropping the wood down by the fire and pulling the bundle over to her. "Aluminum cans, plastic bottles, clothes, this fishing net and some other stuff. It's all stuff we can use." He turned from her to put wood of the now dying fire, bringing the flames back to life. He picked up the cooked lizards and walked back over to her. "Dinner's ready," he said, holding out his hand to her so she could take one.

Olivia made a face and felt her stomach churn. "Why don't we just have another coconut?"

"I told you, we need protein," he said with a frown. "They're small enough to eat whole. If it makes you feel better, we can crack open a coconut to wash it down with."

She groaned and took one of the lizards from his outstretched hand. "Here goes nothing." She held her nose and put the whole thing in her mouth.


End file.
